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S02890 Summary:

BILL NOS02890B
 
SAME ASSAME AS A05837-B
 
SPONSORMAY
 
COSPNSRBIAGGI, BROOKS, GAUGHRAN, HARCKHAM, JORDAN, KAPLAN, MYRIE, RIVERA, RYAN, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, SKOUFIS
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Add §399-nn, Gen Bus L
 
Relates to requiring publishers to offer licenses for electronic books to libraries under reasonable terms; defines terms; establishes penalties.
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S02890 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         2890--B
 
                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                    January 26, 2021
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  Sens.  MAY,  BROOKS,  GAUGHRAN, HARCKHAM, JORDAN, MYRIE,
          RIVERA, RYAN, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, SKOUFIS -- read  twice  and  ordered
          printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer
          Protection -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
          amended  and  recommitted  to  said committee -- committee discharged,
          bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended  and  recommitted  to  said
          committee
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  general  business law, in relation to requiring
          publishers to offer licenses for electronic books to  libraries  under
          reasonable terms
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
     2  399-nn to read as follows:
     3    § 399-nn. Electronic book  licenses.  1.  For  the  purposes  of  this
     4  section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
     5    (a)  "electronic  book"  means a text document that has been converted
     6  into or published in a digital  format  that  is  read  on  a  computer,
     7  tablet, smart phone, or electronic device; and
     8    (b) "publisher" means one whose business is the manufacture, promulga-
     9  tion, and sale of books, journals, or other literary productions includ-
    10  ing those in digital form consisting of text, imagery or both.
    11    2.  Any publisher who offers to license electronic books to the public
    12  shall offer to license such books to libraries in the state  on  reason-
    13  able  terms  that would permit the libraries to provide their users with
    14  access to such electronic books.
    15    3. (a) Such reasonable terms shall include:
    16    (i) a limitation on the number of users  to  whom  the  libraries  may
    17  simultaneously provide access to the electronic books;
    18    (ii)  a  limitation  on the number of days the libraries may provide a
    19  user with access to the electronic books; and
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04861-06-1

        S. 2890--B                          2
 
     1    (iii) the use of technological protection measures that would  prevent
     2  a  user  from  (A) maintaining access to the electronic books beyond the
     3  access period set forth in the license, and (B)  providing  other  users
     4  with access to the electronic books.
     5    (b) Such reasonable terms shall not include a limitation on the number
     6  of licenses for electronic books libraries may purchase at the same date
     7  available to the public.
     8    4. Whenever there shall be a violation of this section, an application
     9  may  be  made  by  the attorney general in the name of the people of the
    10  state of New York, to a  court  or  justice  having  jurisdiction  by  a
    11  special  proceeding  to  issue  an  injunction,  and  upon notice to the
    12  defendant of not less than five days, to enjoin and restrain the contin-
    13  uance of such violations; and if it shall appear to the satisfaction  of
    14  the  court  or  justice  that  the defendant has, in fact, violated this
    15  section, an injunction may be issued by the court or justice,  enjoining
    16  and restraining any further violations, without requiring proof that any
    17  person  has,  in  fact,  been  injured  or  damaged thereby. In any such
    18  proceeding, the court may make allowances to  the  attorney  general  as
    19  provided  in  paragraph  six  of subdivision (a) of section eighty-three
    20  hundred three of the civil practice law and rules, and  direct  restitu-
    21  tion.  Whenever  the  court  shall  determine  that  a violation of this
    22  section has occurred, the court may impose a civil penalty of  not  more
    23  than  five  hundred  dollars  for  the  initial  offense, and the second
    24  offense and  any  offense thereafter shall  be  punishable  by  a  civil
    25  penalty  not to exceed one thousand dollars.
    26    § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    27  have  become  a  law and shall apply to contracts entered into, renewed,
    28  modified, or amended on or after such effective date.
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